The public-private road to bankruptcy?

A failure to book public-private partnerships on balance-sheets allows governments to drive a hole through plans to cap deficits.

On 9 December, the EU’s member states – with the exception of the UK – agreed to a new treaty that will impose strict caps on government spending and borrowing. This intention may end up being yet another paper tiger, for many different reasons.

The European Commission’s revised transparency rules have given new relevance to the EU’s transparency register. But the Commission’s plans to export the system to other EU institutions face major obstacles.